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Rose City Roots · Timeline · Chapter 6 of 11

Rails, Ferries and Crossings

1820S TO 2026

Windsor began as 'the Ferry'. Every crossing since, by boat, train, bridge or tunnel, has changed the city.

Timeline

Streetcar No. 351 in Windsor
Streetcar No. 351, 2025. Chris Woodrich, CC BY-SA 4.0. Heritage streetcar place image for Rails, Ferries and Crossings.
  1. 1820s to 1930s The ferries. A horse ferry runs from 1827, and the Detroit and Windsor Ferry Company follows (Ontario Historical Society ferry history). Sources: Ontario Historical Society ferry history (PDF) · Canadian Encyclopedia
  2. 1836 Named Windsor. The hamlet around the ferry dock, known as the Ferry, Richmond or South Detroit, agrees on the name Windsor. Sources: Canadian Encyclopedia · City of Windsor
  3. 1854 The railway arrives. The Great Western Railway reaches its terminus here. Windsor becomes a village in 1854, a town in 1858 and a city on 14 April 1892. Sources: Canadian Encyclopedia · City of Windsor
  4. 1 January 1867 Trains on the water. The Great Western's car ferry Great Western, assembled at Walkerville, begins carrying rail cars across the river. Sources: Ontario Historical Society ferry history (PDF) · Great Lakes Vessel History
  5. 1882 The Grand Trunk. The Great Western is absorbed by the Grand Trunk; the ferry passes to the new owner. Sources: Canadian Encyclopedia · Great Lakes Vessel History
  6. 1882 to 1888 Hiram Walker's railway. The Lake Erie and Detroit River Railway runs from Walkerville toward Kingsville and Leamington (Walkerville history; one source). One source so far. Sources: Walkerville history
  7. 6 June 1886 An electric streetcar. The Windsor Electric Railway, two miles from Windsor to Walkerville on Charles Van Depoele's system, is reported as Canada's first electric streetcar line. Sources: Wikipedia · City of Windsor
  8. 26 July 1910 The rail tunnel. The Michigan Central Railway Tunnel opens, an early immersed-tube tunnel under the Detroit River. Sources: Detroit Historical Society · Structurae
  9. About 1920 The bridge that was never built. A Detroit Publishing postcard shows Charles Evan Fowler's proposed Detroit-Windsor bridge with an '1803 ft. span'. It was never built. Sources: Wikimedia Commons · Detroit Historical Society
  10. 11 and 15 November 1929 The Ambassador Bridge. Dedicated on Armistice Day, 11 November 1929; opened to traffic on 15 November 1929. Walpole Island's research places its Canadian landing in the 1797 camping ground (see Nations of the Strait). Sources: Historic Detroit · Ambassador Bridge · University of Michigan Ambassador Bridge records finding aid · Windsor News
  11. 1 to 3 November 1930 The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. Dedicated on 1 November, open to the public on 3 November 1930. Sources: Detroit-Windsor Tunnel · Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
  12. Tunnel buses in the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, about 1945
    Tunnel buses, about 1945. PECO postcard. Public domain. Place context for the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.
  13. 7 May 1939 Last streetcars. Buses replace Windsor's streetcars. Streetcar 351 is restored downtown today. Sources: City of Windsor · City of Windsor
  14. 1938 and 1942 The last ferries. The Windsor to Detroit ferry ended in 1938. The last Walkerville to Detroit run was logged on 15 May 1942. Sources: Windsor Star · SWODA, Leddy Library
  15. 24 July to 5 August 2026 The Gordie Howe International Bridge. Opening ceremony on 24 July, vehicles from 27 July, and a toll-free walking and cycling path from 5 August 2026. Sources: Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority · CBC News

Connections between records

Links we found between separate records. Each one says how strong it is.

NEW CONNECTION · TWO CROSSINGS, ONE CAMPING GROUND

Walpole Island's 2013 research places the Ambassador Bridge's Canadian landing inside the 61-acre camping ground set aside in 1797.

How strong: The Nation's research, credited to it. Walpole Island First Nation · Historic Detroit

Who built the bridge

The opening is already on this timeline. These cards add the financier and opening-day pictures.

Officers of the Detroit International Bridge Company on the span at opening, November 1929
Officers of Detroit International Bridge Company on span at opening with their families, November 1929. Wikimedia Commons. Public domain. Group opening photo; not a labelled solo Bower portrait.

Joseph A. Bower

Private financier of the Ambassador Bridge (dedicated 11 November 1929; open to traffic 15 November 1929) Crossings

Detroit-born New York financier who privately financed the Ambassador Bridge. McClintic-Marshall engineered and built the span. This card is about the crossing, not a claim that Bower was a Windsor resident. Tie: financed the bridge that lands in Windsor.

Sources: Ambassador Bridge facts · Detroit Historical Society · Historic Detroit
Handshake on the Ambassador Bridge boundary line at dedication, 11 November 1929
Public domain. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Dedication day, 11 November 1929

Dedication ceremonies; traffic followed on 15 November 1929 Event

A public-domain photograph shows a handshake on the international boundary line on dedication day, 11 November 1929. Traffic opened four days later, on 15 November 1929 (Historic Detroit; Ambassador Bridge; U-M finding aid). Use as event context beside the Bower / builders card.

Sources: Wikimedia Commons public-domain opening-day photograph

Pictures

The Ambassador Bridge seen from the Canadian side, 12 November 2026.
The Ambassador Bridge, 12 November 2026. Photo by Kyle L. Stewart, Windsor News.
A sign reading Ambassador Bridge, 12 November 2026.
Ambassador Bridge sign, 12 November 2026. Photo by Kyle L. Stewart, Windsor News.
The Ambassador Bridge over the Detroit River, 12 November 2026.
The Ambassador Bridge over the Detroit River, 12 November 2026. Photo by Kyle L. Stewart, Windsor News.
A tower of the Ambassador Bridge over the Detroit River, 12 November 2026.
Ambassador Bridge tower, from the riverfront, 12 November 2026. Photo by Kyle L. Stewart, Windsor News.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge, a cable-stayed span, seen from the Canadian side, 12 November 2026.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge, 12 November 2026. Photographed from the Canadian side, with industrial yards in the foreground. Photo by Kyle L. Stewart, Windsor News.
Ferry at Windsor (second view), 1913
Ferry at Windsor (second view), 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 8. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
Grand Trunk Railway car ferry 'Transport', 1913
Grand Trunk Railway car ferry 'Transport', 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 20. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
Michigan Central Railroad tunnel, 1913
Michigan Central Railroad tunnel, 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 20. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
CPR Depot, 1913
CPR Depot, 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 20. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
Sandwich, Windsor and Amherstburg Railway (streetcars), 1913
Sandwich, Windsor and Amherstburg Railway (streetcars), 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 61. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
Streetcars on Ouellette at Wyandotte
Streetcars on Ouellette at Wyandotte. Ouellette Avenue at Wyandotte Street, about 1938. Photographer unknown. Walkerville Times Collection, Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive, Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
Essex Terminal Railway map, 1913
Essex Terminal Railway map, 1913. Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 1913, compiled by Harry Wentworth Gardner (Windsor: Evening Record, 1913), p. 94. Photographer uncredited. Public domain. Via Canadiana.ca / Wikimedia Commons.
Postcard of Charles Evan Fowler's proposed Detroit-Windsor bridge, '1803 ft. span', c. 1920 (never built)
Postcard of Charles Evan Fowler's proposed Detroit-Windsor bridge, '1803 ft. span', c. 1920 (never built). 'Str. Greyhound and Detroit Windsor Bridge' (proposed bridge by C. E. Fowler, never built), Detroit Publishing Co. postcard 81402, c. 1920. NYPL. Public domain.
'Off to Canada' tunnel postcard
'Off to Canada' tunnel postcard. Off to Canada, Detroit-Windsor Tunnel postcard, about 1935. Scan by Jim Griffin, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Gordie Howe International Bridge, clear morning (under construction)
Gordie Howe International Bridge, clear morning (under construction). Gordie Howe International Bridge, 30 Sept 2025. Photo: TheWxResearcher, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
A tower of the Ambassador Bridge under construction with the first footwalk cable going up, 1928.
Raising the first footwalk cable, Ambassador Bridge, 1928. Looking south toward the Canadian side, with the steamship Columbia on the river; the archive dates it probably 8 August 1928. Construction began on 7 May 1927 and the bridge opened to traffic on 15 November 1929. Walkerville Times Collection. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
The Ambassador Bridge under construction, seen past the spires of Assumption Church, about 1928.
The Ambassador Bridge going up, seen from the roof of Assumption Church, about 1928. Assumption College Collection, Big Scrapbook. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
The lit Ambassador Bridge at night beside the dark spire of Assumption Church, about 1930.
The Ambassador Bridge at night, about 1930. Assumption Church and its parish residence are also in view. The neon "Ambassador Bridge" signs, added between 1929 and 1933, are not yet up. Assumption College Collection, Big Scrapbook. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
The Ambassador Bridge spanning the Detroit River, seen from Detroit looking east, 1935.
The Ambassador Bridge from Detroit, looking east, 1935. From Souvenir Views of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, a Dominion Series view book (Ottawa: Photogelatine Engraving Co., [1935]). Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
A view-book page with three photographs: inside the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, its entrance, and tunnel buses, 1935.
The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, 1935. Top: inside the tunnel. Bottom left: the entrance. Bottom right: tunnel buses running between Windsor and Detroit. From Souvenir Views of Windsor, Ontario, Canada (Photogelatine Engraving Co., [1935]). Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
Streetcar tracks torn up for repair on Wyandotte Street East, looking east, about 1920.
Streetcar track repairs on Wyandotte Street East, about 1920. Just west of Hall Avenue, looking east. The work is by Merlo, Merlo and Ray, a construction company founded in 1913 by Louis A. Merlo, Paul Merlo and John Ray. Donated by Richard Merlo; original in a private collection. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain.
The Hiram Walker and Sons offices and a grain elevator seen from the Detroit River, with a steam launch at the dock, about 1900 to 1910.
Hiram Walker & Sons offices from the river, Walkerville, about 1900 to 1910. The offices and grain elevator from the Detroit River, with a steam launch at the dock. Detroit Publishing Co. / Library of Congress, LC-DIG-det-4a20023. No known restrictions on publication. Source record
The steamer S.S. Put-in-Bay on the Detroit River at Amherstburg, about 1920, seen from a shoreline dock.
The steamer S.S. Put-in-Bay on the Detroit River at Amherstburg, about 1920. A postcard of the excursion steamer off Amherstburg, not a view of Put-in-Bay, Ohio. The printed caption on the card reads S.S. Put-in-Bay on Detroit River, Amherstburg, Ontario Canada. Alvin D. McCurdy fonds, Archives of Ontario, I0026092, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain. Source record
A streetcar on a tree-lined Windsor street, on a colour postcard postmarked 1912, titled London Street, Windsor, Canada.
A streetcar in Windsor, on a postcard postmarked 1912. The card is titled London Street, Windsor, Canada. The Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive notes that the scene may not be London Street (now University Avenue). Postcards From The Past, Volume 1, page 53, identifies it as the corner of Ouellette Avenue and Erie Street, looking north. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain. Source record
A steamer at the Walkerville ferry landing, with distillery warehouses and a rail trestle, about 1905.
Ferry landing, Walkerville, about 1905. A steamer at the Walkerville ferry landing, with the distillery warehouses and a rail trestle. Detroit Publishing Co. / Library of Congress, LC-DIG-det-4a20970. No known restrictions on publication. Source record
The paddle steamer Lansdowne of Windsor crossing the Detroit River through ice, 1905.
Crossing the Detroit River in winter, 1905. The nameboard reads Lansdowne of Windsor. Detroit Photographic Co., copyright 1905. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Detroit Publishing Company Collection, LC-DIG-det-4a15742. No known restrictions on publication. Source record
Period postcard of the Livingstone Channel rock cut at Amherstburg, with smokestacks on the bank, about 1908 to 1912.
Livingstone Cut, Amherstburg, about 1908 to 1912. A period postcard of the Livingstone Channel rock cut, with smokestacks on the bank. The card itself is not dated; the years given here are the known construction period of the channel. Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library. Likely public domain (a period postcard of the channel cut). The library retains physical rights in the object and the scan. Source record
East portal of the Michigan Central Detroit River railroad tunnel on the Canadian side, on a postcard postmarked 11 August 1911.
East portal of the Michigan Central Detroit River Tunnel, Canadian side, 1911. The Canadian portal of the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel, which opened in 1910. This is the railroad tunnel, not the 1930 Detroit-Windsor vehicle tunnel. A postcard published by the Detroit News Company, a postcard publisher of the period, and postmarked 11 August 1911. Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library. Public domain (published 1911). The library retains physical rights in the object and the scan. Source record
An aerial view of downtown Windsor about 1920, with the riverfront, commercial streets, rail yards and a train ferry loaded with railway cars at the dock.
Windsor, Ontario, from an aeroplane, about 1920. The printed title on the deposit is "Windsor Ontario from an Aeroplane." The view looks over the downtown waterfront and a train ferry loaded with railway cars. This is a different photograph from the two sister cards already on the Maps chapter (HS85/10/37668, Detroit seen from an aeroplane over Windsor, and HS85/10/37669, another Windsor aerial). Canadian Postcard Company, about 1920. British Library HS85/10/37670, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain. Source record
The Ambassador Bridge approach under construction over London Street in Windsor, 5 October 1928, with a contractor billboard and a crane on the unfinished deck.
Canadian viaduct on London Street, Windsor, 5 October 1928. The Ambassador Bridge approach going up over London Street, with the McClintic-Marshall contractor billboard and a crane on the unfinished deck. Photograph by American Commercial Photo Co., Detroit, dated 5 October 1928 on the print. Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library. Public domain (US-distributed 1928). The library retains physical rights in the object and the scan. Source record
A train ferry loaded with railway cars on the Detroit River at Windsor, 1928, with the nameboard Michigan of Detroit.
Train ferry at Windsor, 1928. The printed caption on the Keystone View Company stereograph mount reads "Ferryboat Carrying Twenty-one Railway Cars across the Detroit River at Windsor, Can." The nameboard on the boat reads Michigan of Detroit. Keystone View Company no. 31062. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-stereo-1s18275. Public domain (U.S. publication, 1928). Source record
Canada Post first-day cover for the first regular official airmail flight from Windsor to Toronto, postmarked 15 July 1929.
First regular official airmail flight, Windsor to Toronto, 15 July 1929. A first-day cover for the first regular official airmail flight, postmarked Windsor at 5 a.m. and received in Toronto at 9:30 a.m. the same day. The cachet map shows the Detroit River and Belle Isle. Mike Skreptak Collection. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain. Source record
A postcard of Walker Airport near Windsor, about 1930, with biplanes on the field and a steel hangar in the background.
Walker Airport near Windsor, about 1930. A postcard published by the Windsor News Co., a postcard publisher of the period, identifier 129980. The printed caption on the card says the site was donated by the Walker interests of Walkerville and was being used to instruct aviators of the district. The airport opened on 8 September 1928. The archive notes that the hangar was a Truscon Standard Steel Hangar. Courtesy of the Southwestern Ontario Digital Archive (SWODA), Leddy Library, University of Windsor. Public domain. Source record
The train ferry Pere Marquette 14 on the Detroit River near the Ambassador Bridge, April 1943, with Windsor church spires on the far shore.
Train ferry Pere Marquette 14 near the Ambassador Bridge, April 1943. The rail ferry on the Detroit River, with the Ambassador Bridge and Windsor church spires on the far shore. Photographed from the Detroit side by Arthur S. Siegel for the Office of War Information. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives, LC-USW3-021649-C. Public domain. Source record
Postcard of the Canadian Pacific railway station in Windsor, about 1910.
C.P.R. station, Windsor, about 1910. The printed title is "C.P.R.R. Station, Windsor, Canada." This is a different photograph from the 1913 CPR Depot view already on this page. The Toronto Public Library dates this postcard to 1910 and marks it Public Domain. Courtesy of Toronto Public Library, PC_ON_2166, object 322562. Shown at the available size (about 650 pixels wide). Source record
Postcard of the railroad ferry apron and slip at Windsor, about 1910.
Railroad ferry at Windsor, about 1910. The printed title is "Railroad Ferry at Windsor, Ont., Canada." The view shows the ferry apron at the Windsor slip. This is a different photograph from the train-ferry and passenger-ferry pictures already on this page. The Toronto Public Library dates this postcard to 1910 and marks it Public Domain. Courtesy of Toronto Public Library, PC_ON_2170, object 307487. Shown at the available size (about 650 pixels wide). Source record
Postcard of the twin portals of the Michigan Central Railway tunnel at Windsor, about 1910.
Michigan Central Railway tunnel at Windsor, about 1910. The printed title is "Detroit, Mich., River Tunnel as it appears at Windsor, Ont." The Toronto Public Library dates the card to 1910. This is the Michigan Central Railway tunnel, which opened in 1910, not the later Detroit-Windsor vehicle tunnel of 1930. This is a different photograph from the 1911 Canadian portal view and the 1913 tunnel view already on this page. The Toronto Public Library dates this postcard to 1910 and marks it Public Domain. Courtesy of Toronto Public Library, PC_ON_2169, object 267768. Shown at the available size (about 650 pixels wide). Source record
A group of seven men posed at the opening of the Livingstone Channel, 1912, including Robert Bruce Livingstone and William Allan Livingstone.
Opening of the Livingstone Channel, 1912. The Bentley record titles it the opening of the Livingstone Channel, 1912, and names Robert Bruce Livingstone and William Allan Livingstone, second and fourth from the left respectively. The other men are not named here. This is a different photograph from the Livingstone Cut landscape already on this page. Regents of the University of Michigan. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library, HS8715. Source record

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